Bottle-washing machine.



No.865,21'7.- PATENTED SEPT.3,1907 .H. w. VAN LEIR.

BOTTLE WASHING MACHINE. APPLICATION mam [AI 1. 1007.

"llT" illll liim mu.

mmwi

ill-2a UNITED STATFfi arana? OFFICE.

HENRY W. VAN LEIR, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO S. S. WENZELL MACHINE COMPANY, OF CHARLESTON, WEST VIRGINIA, A CORPORATION OF WEST VIRGINIA.

BOTTLE-WASHING MACHINE.

Patented Sept. 3, 1907.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY W. VAN LEIR, a citizen of the United States, residing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, have invented certain Improvements in Bottle-Washing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention consists of a certain improvement in that class of bottle washing machines in which the bottles are disposed and confined in an inverted position, and have vertical movement in respect to the rotating brushes whereby the cleansing of the interior of the bottles is accomplished, the object of my invention being to provide such a machine with simple and effective means for quickly and accurately adjusting the clamping frame for-the bottles to suit the particular length for the latter. This object I attain in the manner hereinafter described, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 represents a perspective view of sufficient of a bottle washing machine of the character to which my invention relates to properly illustrate those parts constituting the subject of the said invention. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of a portion of the ma chine, and Fig. 3 is a perspective view illustrating a modification of one of the features of the invention.

In the drawing, 11 represent oppositely disposed posts or standards connected together at their upper ends by a cross frame 2, and serving as guides for the vertically movable elements of the machine.

The cleansing brushes are contained within a telescopic casing 3 provided at the top with a cover plate 4 in which are a number of equidistantly spaced openings for the reception of the mouths of the inverted bottles, each of these openings having, beneath it, a bottlesupporting device 5 (see Fig. 2) upon which the mouth of the bottle rests and with which said mouth is held in contact by reason of the pressure of a frame 6 upon the bottom of the inverted bottle, this frame being free to slide on the posts 1 and being depressed into contact with the bottles by means of cams 7 upon a transverse shaft 9, which is free to turn in suitable hearings in sleeves 10, also mounted so as to be free to slide upon the posts 1, coiled springs 11 serving as a connection between the sleeves 10 and the frame 6, where- 1 by the latter will be raised in order to free the bottles whenever the shaft 9 is so turned by its lever handle 12 as to relieve said frame 6 from the downward pressure of the cams 7.

Vertical movement of the sleeves l0 and of those parts of the machine which have corresponding movement is effected by means of vertical rods 13, secured to the sleeves 10 and having vertical reciprocating movement imparted to them by suitable mechanism at the base of the machine, which, as it forms no part of my present invention, needs no specific description.

As the machine must be adapted for the reception of bottles of different heights it becomes necessary to vary the distance vertically, between the cam shaft 9 and the top plate 4 of the brush casing. Heretofore considerable difficulty has been experienced in accurately effecting such adjustment and it is the purpose of my invention to overcome this difficulty, which I do in the following manner. Free to rotate in bearings formed in brackets 14, slidably mounted on the posts 1, and carrying the top plate of the casing 3 is a transverse shaft 15, which extends across the machine from side to side, passing through the brush casing 3, this shaft having, at each end, a crank 16, which is connected by a rod 17 to a suitable boss upon one of the sliding sleeves 10, the shaft being also, by preference, provided, near each end, with a collar 19 having a series of openings therein, to any one of which may be fitted the end of a lever handle 20, whereby the manipulation of said handle will cause the shaft 15 to partly turn in its bearings in the brackets 14. The shaft 15 is also, by preference, provided with a pointer 21 cooperating with a fixed and graduated dial 22, or said dial may be secured to the shaft and the pointer may be fixed as shown in Fig. 3.

In order to effect any desired vertical adjustment of the shaft 9 and its bearings, the set screws 23, whereby the sleeves 10 are connected to the vertical rods 13, are loosened so as to transfer the support of said sleeves from the rods 13 to the shaft 15, and the latter is then turned so as to raise or lower said sleeves 10 in respect to the rods 13 to any desired extent, depending upon the length of the bottles to be washed, the sleeves being then again secured to the rods 13 by tightening the set screws 23.

As the cranks 16 are correspondingly set upon the shaft 15, and are positively connected to the sleeves 10, it follows that any movement of the shaft 15 will cause precisely the same extent of vertical movement to be imparted to each of the sleeves 10, and preferably accurate adjustment of the latter is therefore insured and a correspondingly true adjustment of the shaft 9 effected, there being no possibility of distortion or improper alinement of said shaft such as is likely to occur when the sleeves 10 are independently adjusted, while at the same time the adjustment can be effected very quickly and the machine thus changed from one length of bottle to another without loss of time.

The graduated dial 22 and the pointer 21 serve to indicate the proper amount of movement of the shaft 15 necessary to adapt the machine to any particular length of bottle, the graduations on the dial 22 indicating the different lengths of bottles upon which the machine is likely to be required to act.

I claim:-

1. The combination of a clamping plate, a cam shaft and its bearings and means operatively connecting the same, the whole constituting the upper clamping device of a bottle washing machine, a transverse adjusting shaft mounted in suitable bearings and positive connections be tween said shaft and said cam shaft bearings, whereby movement of said adjusting shaft will effect vertical adjustment of said cam shaft without affecting the proper alincment of the same.

2. The combination of a clamping plate, a cam shaft and its bearings and means operatively connecting the same, the whole constituting the upper clamping device of a bottle washing machine, reciprocating devices with which said clamping device is normally connected, an adjusting shaft having bearings likewise connected to said reciprocating devices, and connections between said shaft and the cam shaft bearings, whereby the latter, when free from the control of the reciprocating; devices, can be adjusted verticall'y independently of the latter.

The combination of a cam shaft forming one of the members of the clamping device of a bottle washing ma chine, vertically guided bearings for said cam shaft, an adjusting shaft, bearings for the latter and cranks on said shaft, each connected to one of said cam shaft bearings, whereby like adjustment of each of the latter can be simultaneously eifected.

4. The combination of a cam shaft constituting one of the elements of the clamping device of a bottle washing machine, vertically guided bearings for said cam shaft, an

adjusting shaft bearings therefor, cranks on said adjusting shaft, each connected to one of said cam shaft bearings, and a pointer and dial whereby the partial rotative movement of said adjusting shaft can be indicated.

5. The combination in a bottle washing machine of the telescopic brush casing and its top plate and bottle mouth supports, bottle clamping devices comprising a clamping plate, a shaft, cams upon the latter vertically guided bearings for said shaft, and connections between said shaft bearings and the plate, an adjusting shaft, bearings therefor, and connections between said adjusting shaft and the cam shaft bearings whereby corresponding vertical movement can be simultaneously imparted to both of said cam shaft bearings.

6. The combination of the upper clamping devices of a bottle washing machine, means for reciprocating the same,

and adjusting devices also connected to said reciprocating mechanism, and to the clamping devices whereby the latter can be uniformly adjusted in respect to the reciprocating devices, when free from the control of the latter.

7. The combination of the upper clamping devices of a bottle washing machine, means for reciprocating the same, and adjusting devices which are connected both to the reciprocating mechanism and to the clamping devices, provide support for the latter when they are free from the reciprocating mechanism, and also serve to adjust them in respect to said mechanism.

in testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of ,two subscribing witnesses.

HENRY W. VAN LEIR.

Witnesses Enw. B. Po'r'rs, Tnos. S. LOUDEIIBACK. 

